Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has pleaded not guilty to charges he’s facing in a New York City courtroom.
He made his first appearance in an American courtroom on the narco-terrorism charges that the Trump administration used to justify capturing him and bringing him to New York.
Maduro, wearing a blue jail uniform, and his wife were led into court at around noon for a brief, but required, legal proceeding that will likely kick off a prolonged legal fight over whether he can be put on trial in the US.
Both put on headsets to hear the English-language proceedings as they were translated into Spanish.
When asked how he pleaded, Maduro replied: ‘I am innocent. I am a decent man. I am President…’
His defence lawyer clarified: ‘It is a plea of not guilty to all counts.’
He’s since been held in custody until his trial.
When asked if he had read the indictment, Maduro said he had seen it but hadn’t read it.
He added: ‘I am innocent. I am not guilty of anything that is mentioned here.’
Maduro and other Venezuelan officials were indicted in 2020 on ‘narco-terrorism’ conspiracy charges.
The Justice Department released a new indictment Saturday of Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, accusing them of a role in narco-terrorism conspiracy.
